Monthly Archive for March, 2009

Doing Everything Right

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A few years ago, I was visiting a friend and her dryer buzzed.  So we folded together, and when she found an unmated sock and groused about it, I explained my sock bin system.

She turned to me with some irritation and said, “Do you have to do everything right?”

Since then, I’ve been more restrained about offering advice in social situations.  But, no, I don’t have to do everything right.  Doing things badly can be a very useful strategy.  I apply it with abandon when it suits such important goals as arriving to a business summit on time or saving a little time to play video games.

Beyond that, I’ve been finding that having to do things is only a way of thinking.

If I do a lot of things right, I credit a good portion of that to Frank B. Gilbreth.

When I was in grade school, I read Cheaper by the Dozen.  Although the book is mostly about having a family with ten kids, the scene that stayed with me the most is when he had his wife time him as he buttoned his shirt.  He was seeking efficiency, you see.  Sure enough, he discovered that buttoning his shirt from the top down saved several seconds over buttoning it from the bottom up.  Repeated daily over decades, that adds up to serious time.*

I thought about that.  Then I started thinking about everything I did.  Could this be done more efficiently?  How might I save time or energy?  Is this even worth doing at all?

I’m sure I was often insufferable.

Yet, here I am with lots of small systems for everyday tasks that save me a lot of time.  Recently I’ve been noticing that I really do complete many tasks more quickly than average.  Starting early to think about efficiency has paid off immensely.

There are other valuable goals than efficiency.  Warmth to other human beings is important.  So is enjoying your activities.

Still, when it comes to spending less time on a task like mating socks and worrying about unmated socks, efficiency is high on my list of priorities.

So consider some task you do frequently - one that you may have done for years in the same way - and see if you can find a way to do it more efficiently.  The time you save will be your reward.  The practice of thinking about efficiency could pay off even more.

To your success!
Anna

*At least, that’s how I remember it.  I can’t confirm this scene is even in the book!  Interesting.  So, if you know of some other book that actually contains this scene, please let me know!

Small Steps

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“That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Neil Armstrong, as he placed the first footprint on the Moon.

This issue’s Small Step for Space:  Tally our progress.

When the road ahead is long, a pause to look back can fortify us to continue.  I’m pleased with the progress space travel has made during the time I’ve been sending out this newsletter.  The New Mexico Spaceport received funding from votes in two of the contributing counties, and plans a groundbreaking ceremony later this year.  The federal government has begun supporting more education and research in science.  The Virginia Spaceport continues to advance as well.  There’s much more.

So why not send me your personal reports of the steps you have taken?  That progress is worth counting, too.

Book Recommendation

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The Sons of Heaven (The Company) by Kage Baker

The Sons of Heaven is the seventh novel in the Company series.  I found it one of my favorites.  All the trials across the previous books pay off here.  Yes, the Company feels the consequences of its actions - more than that, many of the characters we’ve seen in previous books take steps to become independent.  This is my favorite book in the series - although the short stories collected in Gods and Pawns have a more condensed impact, if you are already familiar with the characters and situations.

When is it Done?

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on March 3, 2009
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There are two basic strategies for knowing when a project is done.  One is to have a vision of the final state.  The other is to set a deadline.

I’ve noticed an inclination to consider the first strategy more ideal.  It can work well.  If you are building a bed or driving to Los Angeles, then it’s fairly easy to recognize when you’ve completed the project.

It isn’t always obvious.  For example, I recently changed my dinner definition to include “Dinner isn’t done until the table is cleared.” This results in having a clean table more often.  It also means that the dinner project takes a little longer - and it applies the time of cleaning to the project that generated the need for it.  I find this good accounting.  It helps me see the full time needed for dinner.

Of course, this line around what is part of one task and what isn’t is totally arbitrary.  I don’t include washing the dishes as part of dinner, although I could.  I also don’t include restocking the fridge, or adding the ingredients I used to a shopping list, or going out to shop.  Or would those be the start of making the next dinner?  How about consulting a cookbook, asking Doug’s opinions, making a plan, and beginning to thaw frozen ingredients?  I’ve chosen to define the project as putting ingredients on the counter, preparing them, setting the table and serving, eating, and then clearing the table and counters again.  I could draw its boundaries differently.

And dinner is a relatively small project, which I repeat frequently!  Bigger projects have even more fluid boundaries.  When are you done moving?  When you step inside the new home?  When the furniture is in place?  When all the boxes are unpacked?

The harder it is to see when a project is finished, the more helpful I find it to have a deadline.  I enjoy organizing myself to complete a project by a certain date.  I also like having a date to call it done.

Writing is a perfect example of a project with an unclear ending point.  Writers can generally see something they could improve.  They could do more research, or find more sparkling phrases, or add in a humorous subplot.  Completely arbitrary deadlines can be helpful here.  After all, you want to finish at some point, and start letting other people enjoy the work.  Then there are other books to write, or other projects to take up.

So, sometimes I just pick a date that feels reasonable, then work back from it and create checkpoints along the way.  If I miss it, no problem.  It was artificial anyway - a tool to help me finish.

When using deadlines this way, it is helpful to take them just seriously enough.  The deadline is basically a game you have defined for yourself - I’ll complete this project on that date to win.  OK, now how do I win?  I’ve seen people collapse under the pressure of too tight of deadlines, and abandon the project altogether without enough urgency to the deadline.  So look for that balance of space and challenge that works best for you.

My deadlines help me make things happen.  I’ve committed to writing Creating Space twice a month, so I do.

So if you have something you want to create, try giving it a deadline.

And let me know what happens!

With all my best wishes for your success,
Anna

Small Steps

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on March 3, 2009
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“That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Neil Armstrong, as he placed the first footprint on the Moon.

This issue’s Small Step for Space:  Join a space group on Facebook

This is an interesting way to connect to people who share your interests.  I’ve joined Yuri’s Night World Space Party, and they are keeping me reminded about upcoming events.

Book Recommendation

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on March 3, 2009
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In the Garden of Iden by Kage Baker

In the Garden of Iden introduces an immense secret history of the world.  Like Fritz Leiber did in The Big Time, Kage Baker makes the powerful choice of following individual characters as she begins her series.  Mendoza, a seventeen year old recruit for Dr. Zeus, Inc. has her first assignment rescuing endangered plants in a botanical garden during the reign of Queen Mary in England.  While I found Mendoza a little self-centered and emotionally unstable (as seventeen year olds can be), I enjoyed the language, the history, and the world building.  There are hints here of much greater plots, which I’ve enjoyed in the following books of The Company series.  Kage Baker has now completed the series, so it is a good time to hop on board.  Since the series contains time travel and multiple conspiracies, the relatively personal story in this book makes an easy introduction to the universe.